Windows Phone ‘to overtake’ iOS by 2016

Market analysts at IDC have predicted that Windows Phone will overtake Apple’s iOS operating system by 2016.

Experts have suggested that it will take a 20 per cent share of the smartphone market within four years.

According to IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, Microsoft’s share will increase markedly in the coming years after a slow start.

It also noted that Android’s current dominance of the market will slip from 61 per cent to 52.9 per cent in 2016.

Nokia took a huge gamble moving from its own Symbian operating system amid poor sales to Microsoft’s offering Windows Phone.

Senior research analyst with IDC’s Mobile Phone Technology and Trends team Ramon Llamas said underpinning the smartphone market is the constantly shifting operating system landscape.

“Android will maintain leadership throughout our forecast, while others will gain more mobile operator partnerships [Apple] or currently find themselves in the midst of a major transition [BlackBerry],” he continued.